Batch, semi-continuous or continuous hydrochlorination of glycerin with reduced volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products and chloroacetone levels

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a process for converting a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon or ester thereof to a chlorohydrin, by contacting the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon or ester thereof starting material with a source of hydrogen chloride at superatmospheric, atmospheric and subatmospheric pressure conditions for a sufficient time and at a sufficient temperature, preferably wherein such contracting step is carried out without substantial removal of water, to produce the desired chlorohydrin product; wherein the desired product or products can be made in high yield without substantial formation of undesired overchlorinated byproducts; said process carried out without a step undertaken to specifically remove volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products or chloroacetone, wherein the combined concentration of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products and chloroacetone is less than 2000 ppm throughout any stage of the said process.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of co-pending application Ser. No.11/710,002 filed Feb. 22, 2007, which is a continuation-in-part ofapplication Ser. No. 11/628,269, filed Jul. 18, 2005, which claims thebenefit of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/628,269 (PCT/US05/025443), filedJul. 18, 2005, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional applicationNo. 60/589,683, filed Jul. 21, 2004.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a batch, semi-batch, continuous orsemi-continuous process for converting a multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon or an ester thereof to a chlorohydrin. More specifically,the present invention relates to a process wherein themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon or an ester thereof is aglycerol; and the chlorohydrin is a dichlorohydrin and an ester thereof,for example, 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol and/or 2,3-dichloro-1-propanol (DCHisomers). The process of the present invention has a benefit ofproducing chlorohydrins having a low concentration of volatile,by-product of halogenated hydrocarbon including chloroacetone.Chlorohydrins prepared by the process of the present invention, areuseful in preparing epoxides such as epichlorohydrins. Unexpectedly,compositions of chlorohydrins and dichlorohydrins of glycerol have beenfound to have combined concentrations of volatile chlorinatedhydrocarbon by-products and chloroacetone less than 2000 ppm throughoutany stage of the said process.

Epichlorohydrin is a widely used precursor to epoxy resins.Epichlorohydrin is a monomer which is commonly used for the alkylationof para-bisphenol A; the resultant diepoxide, either as a free monomeror oligomeric diepoxide, may be advanced to high molecular weight resinswhich are used for example in electrical laminates, can coatings,automotive topcoats and clearcoats.

A known process for the manufacture of epichlorohydrin involveshypochlorination of allyl chloride to form dichlorohydrin. Ring closureof the dichlorohydrin mixture with caustic affords epichlorohydrin whichis distilled to high purity (>99.6%). This chlorohydrin process requirestwo equivalents of chlorine and one equivalent of caustic per moleculeof epichlorohydrin.

In another known process for producing epichlorohydrin the first stepinvolves installing oxygen in the allylic position of propylene, via apalladium catalyzed reaction of molecular oxygen in acetic acid. Theresulting allyl acetate is then hydrolyzed, chlorinated and theincipient dichlorohydrin is ring closed with caustic to epichlorohydrin.This process avoids the production of allyl chloride and therefore usesless chlorine (only one equivalent).

Both known processes for the manufacture of epichlorohydrin describedabove require the sacrificial use of chlorine, and complicationsassociated with the industrial use and generation of hypochlorous acid(HOCl) can be magnified at industrial scale and these processes areknown to produce substantial amounts of chlorinated by-products. Inparticular, it is well known that the hypochlorination of allyl chlorideproduces 1,2,3-trichloropropane and other undesirable chlorinated ethersand oligomers (RCls). RCl issues are managed as an increased cost tomanufacture. As new capital is added to accommodate greater globalproduction, a substantial investment in downstream processing must beadded to accommodate and remediate these unwanted by-products. Thesesame problems are analogous in the HOCl routes to propylene and ethylenechlorohydrin, and thus, these routes are less practiced.

An alternative process, which avoids the generation of HOCl, for exampleas described in WO 2002092586 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,288,248 involves thedirect epoxidation of allyl chloride using titanium silicalite catalysiswith hydrogen peroxide. Despite the advantage of reducing the generationof HOCl, allyl chloride is still an intermediate. The disadvantage ofusing allyl chloride is two-fold: (1) The free radical chlorination ofpropylene to allyl chloride is not very selective and a sizable fraction(>15 mole %) of 1,2-dichloropropane is produced. (2) Propylene is ahydrocarbon feedstock and long-term, global forecast of propylene pricecontinues to escalate. A new, economically viable process for theproduction of epichlorohydrin which avoids the complications ofcontrolled, chlorine-based oxidation chemistry and RCl generation isdesirable. There is a need in the industry for a process for thegeneration of epichlorohydrin which involves a non-hydrocarbon,renewable feedstock.

Glycerin is considered to be a low-cost, renewable feedstock which is aco-product of the biodiesel process for making fuel additives. It isknown that other renewable feedstocks such as fructose, glucose andsorbitol can be hydrogenolized to produce mixtures of vicinal diols andtriols, such as glycerin, ethylene glycol, 1,2-propylene glycol,1,3-propylene glycol and the like.

With abundant and low cost glycerin or mixed glycols, an economicallyattractive process for glycerin or mixed glycol hydrochlorination wouldbe desirable. It would be advantageous if such a process were highlychemoselective to the formation of vicinal chlorohydrins, withoutproduction of RCls.

A process is known for the conversion of glycerol (also referred toherein as “glycerin”) to mixtures of dichloropropanols (also referred toherein as “dichlorohydrins” or DCH), compounds I and II, as shown inScheme 1 below. The reaction is carried out in the presence of anhydrousHCl and an acetic acid (HOAc) catalyst with water removal. Bothcompounds I and II can then be converted to epichlorohydrin viatreatment with caustic.

Various processes using the above chemistry in Scheme 1 have beenreported in the prior art. For example, epichlorohydrin can be preparedby reacting a dichloropropanol such as 2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol or1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol with base. Dichloropropanol, in turn, can beprepared at atmospheric pressure from glycerol, anhydrous hydrochloricacid, and an acid catalyst. A large excess of hydrogen chloride (HCl)gas is recommended to promote the azeotropic removal of water that isformed during the course of the reaction.

For example, Gibson, G. P., Chemistry and Industry 1931, 20, 949-975;and Conant et al., Organic Synthesis CV 1, 292-294, and OrganicSynthesis CV 1, 295-297; have reported distilled yields ofdichlorohydrins in excess of 70% for dichlorohydrins, compounds I and IIin Scheme 1 above, by purging a large excess of anhydrous HCl (up to 7equivalents) through a stirred solution of glycerol and an organic acidcatalyst. The processes described in the above references require theuse of atmospheric pressures of HCl which is used as an azeotropingagent to remove the accumulated water. Other azeotropes are known. Forexample, U.S. Pat. No. 2,144,612 describes using n-butyl ether alongwith excess hydrogen chloride (HCl) gas to promote the reactivedistillation and removal of water.

Indeed, all of the prior art teaches the vaporization of azeotropes withwater to provide high conversion and a process need for sub-atmosphericor atmospheric pressure conditions to accomplish water removal. U.S.Pat. No. 2,144,612 argues the advantageous use of an added azeotropingagent (for example, n-butyl ether) to promote the reactive azeotropicdistillation and elimination of water, again using excess HCl atatmospheric conditions. A similar approach using vacuum removal of wateris taught in German Patent No. 1075103.

German Patent No. 197308 teaches a process for preparing a chlorohydrinby the catalytic hydrochlorination of glycerine by means of anhydroushydrogen chloride. This reference teaches a batch process withseparation of water at atmospheric conditions. German Patent No. 197308does not teach carrying out the hydrochlorination reation process atelevated pressures.

All known prior art for the production of chlorohydrin reportshydrochlorination processes where water is removed as a co-product fromthe process. In particular, WO 2005/021476 teaches a series ofhydrochlorination reactions in which the water of reaction is removed inan atmospheric or sub-atmospheric process by reactive distillation.Similar art is taught in WO2005/054167 with the additional teaching thatthe reaction carried out under higher total pressures (HCl partialpressure not specified) may improve the rate of reaction. However,nothing in WO2005/054167 discloses the use of HCl partial pressure andits effect in its process. WO2005/054167 also exemplifies the need toremove water to effect high conversion and selectivity under atmosphericor subatmospheric pressures. Neither WO 2005/021476 nor WO2005/054167teaches any advantage of leaving water in their processes, or thatremoving the water effects the formation of unwanted chloroethers andRCl's. RCl's are halogenated hydrocarbon by-products of either avolatile or high boiling nature.

The use of extremely large excess amounts of hydrogen chloride (HCl) gasis economically problematic and the inherent contamination with water ofthe unreacted hydrogen chloride and RCl's results in an aqueous hydrogenchloride stream that is not easily recyclable. Furthermore, reactiontimes of 24 to 48 hours are required to achieve a far from completeconversion of glycerin; however, the products often include significantamounts of the undesired overchlorinated trichloropropane andchlorinated ethers. Other processes are also known that use reagentsthat convert alcohols to chlorides but that scavenge water in situ. Forexample, thionyl chloride can be used to convert glycerin to achlorohydrin, as described in Cane, Mauclere C. R. Hebd. Seances Acad.Sci. 1930, 192 and may be selective, but produces stoichiometric amountsof SO₂. The cost and expense of this reagent is not acceptable for theindustrial production of epichlorohydrin or any other chlorohydrinderived from a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon. Likewise, otherhydrochlorination reagents which are mild and effective are consideredexpensive and exotic for this transformation, as described in Gomez, etal. Tetrahedron Letters 2000, 41, 6049-6052. Other low temperatureprocesses convert the alcohol to a better leaving group (for example,mesylate) and provide a soluble form of chloride via an ionic liquidused in molar excess, as described in Leadbeater, et al. Tetrahedron2003, 59, 2253-58. Again, the need for anhydrous conditions,stoichiometric reagents and an expensive form of chloride preventsindustrial consideration of the above process. Furthermore, thesereagents can cause exhaustive chlorination of amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, leading again to undesirableRCl by-products, as taught in Viswanathan, et al. Current Science, 1978,21, 802-803.

To summarize, there are at least five major disadvantages to all of theabove known approaches for preparing a chlorohydrin from glycerin or anyother vicinal-diol, triol or multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon:(1) Atmospheric pressure processes for the hydrochlorination of glycerinor any diol require a large excess of HCl, oftentimes 7-10 fold molarexcess. In an atmospheric pressure process the excess anhydrous HCl isthen contaminated with water. (2) Variants of the above known processesare very slow, batch type reactions, which often take between 24-48hours at temperatures in excess of 100° C. and do not exceed 80-90%conversion to desired chlorohydrin product(s). (3) Exotichydrochlorination reagents may drive the reaction by scavenging water,but oftentimes produce a by-product inconsistent with the economicproduction of a commodity. (4) All of the above approaches producehigher levels of unwanted RCls, as defined above for glycerinhydrochlorination. (5) When the reaction is run at elevated pressure tocontrol evaporization of the reactor contents, low partial pressures ofHCl result in low conversions or retarded reaction rates.

The prior art concludes that water removal is required to promotecomplete conversion of glycerin to dichlorohydrins. To accommodate thiswater removal requirement, the prior art reactions are conducted underazeotropic or reactive distillation or extraction conditions whichrequires a co-solvent or chaser and considerable capital addition to theprocess. All prior art has concluded that there is an equilibriumlimitation to this conversion due to the presence of water in thereaction mixture.

It is desired in the industry to provide a hydrochlorination process forthe production of high purity chlorohydrins frommultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons which overcome all of theinadequacies of the prior art. It would, therefore, be an advance in theart of chlorohydrin chemistry to discover a simple and cost-effectivemethod of transforming diols and triols to chlorohydrins.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the present invention is directed to a batch, semi-batch,semi-continuous or continuous process for producing a chlorohydrin, anester of a chlorohydrin, or a mixture thereof comprising the step ofcontacting glycerin, an ester of glycerin, or a mixture thereof with asource of hydrogen chloride, in the presence of a catalyst to produce achlorohydrin, an ester of a chlorohydrin, or a mixture thereof, saidprocess carried out without a step undertaken to specifically removevolatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products or chloroacetone, whereinthe combined concentration of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbonby-products and chloroacetone is less than 2000 ppm throughout any stageof the said process.

One embodiment of the present invention is directed to a batch,semi-batch, continuous or semicontinuous process for producing achlorohydrin, an ester of a chlorohydrin, or a mixture thereofcomprising the step of contacting a multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon, an ester of a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, or amixture thereof with a source of a superatmospheric partial pressure ofhydrogen chloride to produce a chlorohydrin, an ester of a chlorohydrin,or a mixture thereof without substantially removing water.“Superatmospheric pressure” herein means that the hydrogen chloride(HCl) partial pressure is above atmospheric pressure, i.e. 15 psia orgreater and this operative pressure preferably occurs within theconfines of the convertor or reactor. The elements of this invention areespecially applicable when the multihydroxylated hydrocarbon isglycerin.

It is an objective of the present invention to further minimize theformation of unwanted RCl's or chlorinated glycerol oligomers using theprocess of the present invention.

Another embodiment of the present invention uses hydrogen chloride gasas the hydrogen chloride source to produce a chlorohydrin.

Yet another embodiment of the present invention relates to a batch,semi-batch, continuous or semi-continuous process for preparing achlorohydrin comprising the step of contacting together at asuperatmospheric partial pressure of HCl, for example in the range offrom about 20 psia to about 1000 psia; and at a sufficient temperature,for example in the range of from about 25° C. to about 300° C.: (a) amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, for example a 1,2-diol or a1,2,3-triol; (b) a catalyst that facilitates the conversion of themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon to a chlorohydrin, for example acarboxylic acid, an ester, a lactone, an amide or a lactam; and mixturesthereof; and (c) a hydrogen chloride source, for example hydrogenchloride gas; wherein the process is carried out without substantiallyremoving water during the contacting step.

Still another embodiment of the present invention relates to a batch,semi-batch, continuous or semi-continuous process for preparing adichlorohydrin of glycerin comprising the step of contacting together ata superatmospheric partial pressure of HCl, for example in the range offrom about 20 psia to about 1000 psia; and at a sufficient temperature,for example in the range of from about 25° C. to about 300° C.: (a) anester of a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, for example glycerinmonoacetate; and (b) a hydrogen chloride source, for example hydrogenchloride; wherein the process is carried out without substantiallyremoving water during the contacting or reaction step.

Still another embodiment of the present invention is directed to theadvantages of a superatmospheric pressure hydrochlorination of amulti-hydroxylated hydrocarbon process wherein the coproduct water isallowed to remain in the reaction medium.

Another aspect of the present invention is directed to a novelcomposition which is produced by the aforementioned processes. Inparticular, the composition of the present batch, semi-batch, continuousor semi-continuous superatmospheric pressure process when applied toglycerin, produces a crude dichlorohydrin which contains low levels ofunwanted RCl's. The optional use of a co-catalyst or co-reactantcontaining a non-volatile source of chloride throughout the process mayfurther improve the quality of the crude or refined dichlorohydrinproducts.

Advantages of the present invention includes: (1) The present inventionprocess is simplified in that water removal is not required and aco-solvent/chaser is not required. A “superatmospheric pressure process”herein means a process where reaction occurs under the conditions thatthe hydrogen chloride (HCl) partial pressure is above atmosphericpressure, i.e. 15 psia or greater. The present invention process may berun without additional additives, such as azeotroping agents. (2) Thecatalyst/HCl partial pressure/temperature range used in the process ofthe present invention without water removal accelerates the conversionrate of a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon to a chlorohydrin byalmost 20-fold. The prior art militated away from using asuperatmospheric HCl partial pressure, due to the need by the prior artprocesses for water removal. (3) Unexpectedly, water allowed toaccumulate in a high pressure reaction mixture allows for higher rate ofconversion with a higher selectivity process than the prior art, viz,less chlorinated ethers, less RCls are formed in the present inventionprocess than in the prior art atmospheric HCl process. (4) The catalystsused in the present invention process exhibit improvements over othercatalysts used in the prior art such as acetic acid, thereby drivingselectivity higher and increasing the rate of the process. (5) Thesuperatmospheric pressure process of the present invention uses far lessHCl than the atmospheric pressure process of the prior art to achieveeven more conversion (for example, 1-25% HCl excess for the presentinvention versus a 700-1400% excess for the prior art).

The present invention provides new and unexpected benefits by carryingout the batch, semi-batch, continuous or semicontinuous processincluding for example: (1) High RCl levels known heretofore have beenlowered by use of a batch, semi-batch, semi-continuous or continuousprocess wherein accumulated water co-product is allowed to remain incontact with dichlorohydrin isomers produced from the superatmospherichydrochlorination of glycerin at high conversion levels of glycerin andmonochlorohydrin isomers (MCH). (2) Upon removal of HCl in adistillation stage for the retrieval of dichlorohydrin isomers, theacidic water coproduct retained in the distillation kettle actuallylowers the formation of RCl's, including chloroacetone and chlorinatedethers of glycerin. (3) The optional use in a distillation unit of anon-volatile co-catalyst or co-reactant such as NaCl, KCl or an ionicliquid containing non-volatile chloride as counterion further preventsthe formation of RCl impurities, including especially chlorinatedethers. (4) The optional use in a continuous or batch reactor train of anon-volatile co-catalyst or co-reactant such as NaCl, KCl or an ionicliquid containing non-volatile chloride as counterion further preventsthe formation of RCl impurities, including especially chlorinatedethers.

Another advantaged feature of the hydrochlorination of anmultihydroxylated hydrocarbon under superatmospheric conditions withoutsubstantial water removal relates to the lowering of other unwantedby-products as well. In the case of glycerin, heretofore, it is knownthat long reaction times with a standard azeotropic removal of water canproduce high levels of chloroacetone. It is also taught in the prior artthat at least one removal step is required to lower these unacceptablyhigh levels of chloroacetone. The inherent toxicity of chloroacetone aswell as its potential to act as a chain terminator in subsequentreaction of epichlorohydrin with bisphenol-A renders it highlyundesirable. It may be expected that a process which attempted to removewater during the hydrochlorination process would provide conditions forthe dehydration of 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol (1-MCH). Not to be bound bytheory, it is also possible that chloroacetone evolves from the thermalelimination of HCl from 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol.

Reactive distillation of water from a medium which contains 1-MCH wouldfurther contaminate a wet HCl evolving from the reactor withchloroacetone. This effluent or recycle HCl would be contaminated withlow boiling chloroacetone, requiring the need for such chloroacetone tobe condensed or removed in a subsequent step before this HCl could beback-added to another hydrochlorination process. Other volatile RCl'ssuch as dichloropropenes and trichloropropene can be concentrated inthis purge stream of HCl. It would therefore be of interest andadvantage to have never produced substantial quantities of chloroacetoneor other halogenated hydrocarbon impurity in any process, particularlyin an industrial scale process.

As a matter of course, it is well appreciated in the literature thatchloroacetone is an extremely reactive electrophile. For example, it is33,000 times more reactive toward iodide displacement than is1-chloropropane (R. Breslow in “Organic Reaction Mechanisms” 2^(nd)Edition, W. A. Benjamin Inc., Menlo Park, Calif. 1964, p 83-84. It isfurther appreciated that chloroacetone is readily hydrolyzed at lowtemperatures to acetol or hydroxyacetone via enzymic approaches (Paizs,C. et al, Journal of the Chemical Society, Perkin Transactions 1 2002,21, 2400-2402.) as well as with formate or acetate anion (Levene et alin “Organic Synthesis” Collective Vol. 2, Ed. H. A. Blatt; John Wileyand Sons Inc., New York, 1943 pp 5-6). In addition, the caustic mediatedhydrolysis of chloroacetone is known to be extraordinarily fast andtherefore is known under conditions of base-catalyzed epoxidation of ahalohydrin (e.g DCH to epichlorohydrin upon sodium hydroxide,saponification treatment). Although removal of chloroacetone duringcaustic treatment of of DCH is known, it goes without saying that theoverall yield of the chlorination process is lowered. In addition, theacetol which is co-produced ends up in the waste water outfall from thesaid process. It is recognized that acetol in a waste stream impartstoxicity to such outfall and requires further remediation beyond thebattery limits of the process. It would be of benefit for an industrialprocess to minimize acetol or hydroxyacetone in waste water treatmentand to never generate sizable amounts of its chloroacetone precursor.

The prior art which operates within the confines of continuous removalof water to ostensibly drive the hydrochlorination process alleges thatlarge quantities of chloroacetone may be produced. In (Gilbeau et al WO2006, 100311 A3), it is claimed that at least one removal step for theproduction of DCH is required to lessen the chloroacetone levels. Thisstep may include the saponification process wherein crude dichlorohydrinis reacted with caustic to produce epichlorohydrin. In light of theknown facile hydrolysis of this impurity, it is also reported thatlevels of chloroacetone can be reduced during the saponification of1-chloro-2-propanol with base (Trent et al WO 95/14635). The reductionof chloroacetone through a caustic treatment is therefore known.

The batch, semi-batch, continuous or semi-continuous superatmosphericpressure process allows the use of crude, wet glycerol as amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon starting material, yet stillachieves higher selectivity and faster conversion than prior art withoutrequiring additional water removal.

Another benefit of using the catalysts of the present invention is thesimplified process resulting from the use of low volatility, recycleablecatalysts, and consequently improved process economics.

The batch, semi-batch, continuous or semi-continuous superatmosphericpressure process of the present invention addresses a need in the art byproviding a means for rapidly (for example, less than about 12 hours)converting glycerin or an ester of glycerin to a chlorohydrin in highper-pass yield (for example greater than 90 mole %) and high selectivity(for example, greater than 90 mole %). Surprisingly, the method of thepresent invention can be carried out without azeotropic or in situremoval of water.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a process flowchart illustrating one embodiment of the processof the present invention referred to herein as a once-through, norecycle process.

FIG. 2 is a process flowchart illustrating another embodiment of theprocess of the present invention referred to herein as a catalyst andintermediate recycle process.

FIG. 3 is a process flowchart illustrating another embodiment of theprocess of the present invention referred to herein as a catalyst andintermediate recycle process with transesterification.

FIG. 4 is graphical illustration showing the results of the amount, inmole %, of conversion of glycerol to monochlorohydrins anddichlorohydrins as a function of time, carried out using an example thatis not part of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In one broad aspect of the present invention, the present invention is aprocess of converting a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon or anester thereof, such as glycerin or an ester of glycerin, to achlorohydrin or an ester thereof comprising the step of contacting theglycerin or an ester of glycerin with a hydrogen chloride source atsuperatmospheric partial pressure and under reaction conditions toproduce the chlorohydrin or ester thereof with the substantial absenceof water removal. “Substantial absence of water removal” herein meansthat during the reaction process step or steps, no method is employed toremove the water present in the process (for example, either water ofreaction or that introduced with the feed component(s)) during thehydrochlorination step. These methods may include any reactive,cryoscopic, extractive, azeotropic, absorptive or evaporative in-situ orex-situ techniques or any known techniques for water removal. In a finalstage of a batch, semi-batch, continuous or semi-continuous process forthe production of dichlorohydrin isomers of glycerin, only then is waterand product DCH removed, preferably by distillation or some extractivetechnique.

The present invention also relates to the process which produces novelcompositions of chlorohydrins and dichlorohydrins of glycerol, whichhave been found to have combined concentrations of volatile chlorinatedhydrocarbon by-products and chloroacetone less than 2000 ppm throughoutany stage of the process. A “stage of the process” refers to equipmentwherein the glycerin hydrochlorination process or reaction takes place,as well as purification trains and/or storage. The equipment may includefor example, but would not be limited to, stirred tank reactors, plugflow reactors, batch reactors, transfer lines, pumps, distillationcolumns and heat exchange units. The above low levels (i.e. less than2000 ppm) of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products andchloroacetone are maintained any where in the process prior tosaponification.

The term glycerin, glycerol or glycerine and esters thereof may be usedto describe the chemical, 1,2,3-trihydroxypropane and esters thereof.

As used herein, the term “multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon”refers to a hydrocarbon which contains at least two hydroxyl groupsattached to separate saturated carbon atoms. Themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon may contain, but not to belimited thereby, from 2 to about 60 carbon atoms.

Any single carbon of a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon bearingthe hydroxyl (OH) functional group must possess no more than one OHgroup, and must be sp3 hybridized. The carbon atom bearing the OH groupmay be primary, secondary or tertiary. The multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon used in the present invention must contain at least two sp3hybridized carbons each bearing an OH group. Themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon includes any vicinal-diol(1,2-diol) or triol (1,2,3-triol) containing hydrocarbon includinghigher orders of contiguous or vicinal repeat units. The definition ofmultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon also includes for example one ormore 1,3- 1,4-, 1,5- and 1,6-diol functional groups as well. Themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon may also be a polymer such aspolyvinylalcohol. Geminal-diols, for example, would be precluded fromthis class of multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon compounds.

It is to be understood that the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarboncan contain aromatic moieties or heteroatoms including for examplehalide, sulfur, phosphorus, nitrogen, oxygen, silicon, and boronheteroatoms; and mixtures thereof.

“Chlorohydrin” is used herein to describe a compound containing at leastone hydroxyl group and at least one chlorine atom attached to separatesaturated carbon atoms. A chlorohydrin that contains at least twohydroxyl groups is also a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon.Accordingly, the starting material and product of the present inventioncan each be chlorohydrins; in that case, the product chlorohydrin ismore highly chlorinated than the starting chlorohydrin, i.e., has morechlorine atoms and fewer hydroxyl groups than the starting chlorohydrin.A preferred chlorohydrin is a chlorohydrin used, for example, as astarting material. A more preferred highly chlorinated chlorohydrin suchas a dichlorohydrin, may be, for example, a product of the process ofthe present invention.

Multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons useful in the present inventioninclude for example 1,2-ethanediol; 1,2-propanediol; 1,3-propanediol;1-chloro-2,3-propanediol; 2-chloro-1,3-propanediol; 1,4-butanediol;1,5-pentanediol; cyclohexanediols; 1,2-butanediol;1,2-cyclohexanedimethanol; 1,2,3-propanetriol (also known as, and usedherein interchangeable as, “glycerin”, “glycerine”, or “glycerol”); andmixtures thereof. Preferably, the multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbons used in the present invention include for example1,2-ethanediol; 1,2-propanediol; 1,3-propanediol; and1,2,3-propanetriol; with 1,2,3-propanetriol being most preferred.

Examples of esters of multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons useful inthe present invention include for example ethylene glycol monoacetate,propanediol monoacetates, glycerin monoacetates, glycerin monostearates,glycerin diacetates, and mixtures thereof. In one embodiment, suchesters can be made from mixtures of multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbons with exhaustively esterified multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbons, for example mixtures of glycerol triacetate and glycerol.

The multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons or esters thereof of thepresent invention, such as glycerin or esters thereof, may be used inany desirable non-limiting concentration. In general, higherconcentrations of glycerin or esters thereof are preferred for economicreasons. Useful concentrations of glycerin or esters thereof for thepresent invention may include, for example from about 0.01 mole % toabout 99.99 mole %, preferably from about 1 mole % to about 99.5 mole %,more preferably from about 5 mole % to about 99 mole %, and mostpreferably from about 10 mole % to about 95 mole %. The source ofglycerin may be derived from a biomass material or more preferably anoleochemical material. These glycerin feedstocks would include glycerinderived from a biodiesel process or alternatively, glycerin derived fromhydrogenolysis of a cellulosic, starch or carbohydrate material. Thesetypes of feedstocks are termed “renewable” because they are not basedupon hydrocarbon sources such as propylene.

The hydrogen chloride source used in the present invention is preferablyintroduced as a gas, a liquid or in a solution or a mixture, or amixture thereof, such as for example a mixture of hydrogen chloride andnitrogen gas, so long as the required partial pressures of the hydrogenchloride are provided for the process of the present invention.

The most preferred hydrogen chloride source is hydrogen chloride gas.Other forms of chloride may be employed in the present inventionprovided that the required partial pressure of hydrogen chloride isgenerated. Non-volatile chloride in particular may be introduced withany number of cations including those associated with phase transferreagents such as quaternary ammonium and phosphonium salts (for exampletetra-butylphosphonium chloride). Alternatively, ionic liquids suchn-butyl-2-methylimidazolium chloride may be used as a synergist topromote the acid catalyzed displacement of OH from glycerin. A cheap andconvenient approach to raising the steady state concentration ofreactive chloride throughout the process would be to add NaCl or KCl tothe reaction medium, especially in the hydrochlorination of glycerincontaining water of reaction. Not to be bound by any specific reactordesign, the source of non-volatile chloride may be of a homogeneousnature where it circulates throughout a batch or continuous process andparticipates in the ultimate displacement of water groups from glycerinLikewise, this co-reactant can be introduced to a batch or continuousprocess in a heterogeneous format. For example, NaCl pellets or apolymer bound form of phase transfer chloride source could be employedin a fixed-bed or basket format. The polymer may be a crosslinkeddivinylbenzene/styrene copolymer to which an alkylarylammonium cation iscovalently linked and ion paired with chloride anion. These types of ionexchange resins are commercially available and are derived fromchloromethylated polymer beads.

The term, “non-volatile” only relates to the manner in which thechloride containing co-reactant is introduced to the reactorconfiguration. Non-volatile forms of chloride can undergo exchange withHCl in the process or can be slightly soluble or at least reactive inthe hydrochlorination process.

It is also known that these other halide sources may act as co-catalystsfor the hydrochlorination of alcohols. In this respect catalytic amountsof iodide or bromide may be used to accelerate these reactions. Thesereagents may be introduced as gases, liquids or as counterion saltsusing a phase transfer or ionic liquid format. The reagents may also beintroduced as metal salts wherein the alkali or transition metalcounterion does not promote oxidation of the glycerin or glycerin ester.Mixtures of different sources of halide may be employed, for examplehydrogen chloride gas and an ionic chloride, such as tetraalkylammoniumchloride or a metal halide. For example, the metal halide may be sodiumchloride, potassium iodide, potassium bromide and the like.

A commercial process for the regioselective hydrochlorination ofglycerin based upon the tenents of the previously disclosedsuperatmospheric hydrochlorination process without substantial waterremoval produces insignificant by-product impurities relative to thealternative art. Mitigation of chloroethers, chloroacetone,2,3-dichloro-1-propene 1,3-dichloro-2-propanone and trichloropropane arealso inherent advantages to our previously disclosed process.

The process for the hydrochlorination of a glycerin or glycerin estermay be of batch nature, continuous or semi-continuous in nature, with orwithout removal of chlorohydrin products. When the multihydroxylatedaliphatic hydrocarbon is glycerin and the operation is run in acontinuous or semicontinuous fashion, chlorohydrins may be removed viadistillation at a point of high glycerin conversion wherein substantialwater removal has not taken place. A suitable glycerin conversion rangewould be generally from about 50 to about 100%, preferably from about 60to about 100%, more preferably from about 80 to about 100%, and mostpreferably from about 98 to about 100%. In such a case the correspondingconversion of monochlorohydrin (MCH) to dichlorohydrin (DCH) isgenerally from about 80 to about 90%, preferably from about 85 to about95% and more preferably from about 90 to about 99.5%. Rectification ofthe DCH by overhead distillation at a stage in this process could allowfor recycle of the any unconverted intermediates in thehydrochlorination process. These unconverted intermediates wouldinclude, for example, traces of glycerin, MCH residues and catalyticesters thereof as well as non-volatile chlorinated ethers.

Unexpectedly, it has been found that a low level of halogenated ketonessuch as chloroacetone and any other volatile chlorinated hydrocarbonby-products persists in DCH streams that are rectified via adistillation process after a batch or continuous hydrochlorinationprocess, which utilizes a catalyst, a source of super-atmospherichydrogen chloride and occurs without substantial water removal. Thereare also lower levels of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-productsincluding chloroacetone in non-distilled DCH products at high levels ofglycerin conversion. Levels of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbonby-products including chloroacetone in the DCH streams without a removalstep are generally less than about 2000 ppm, preferably less than about1000 ppm, more preferably about 500 ppm, even more preferably less thanabout 300 ppm, most preferably less than about 100 ppm and even mostpreferably below about 50 ppm. Levels of volatile chlorinatedhydrocarbon by-products including chloroacetone in the distilled processstream are generally less than about 2000 ppm, preferably less thanabout 1000 ppm, more preferably about 500 ppm, even more preferably lessthan about 300 ppm, most preferably less than about 100 ppm and evenmost preferably below about 50 ppm.

By-product halogenated hydrocarbons or volatile chlorinated hydrocarbonby-products would include, for example, 1,2,3-trichloropropane andisomers thereof, 1,3-dichloropropene, 1,2-dichloropropene,2,3-dichloro-1-propene, 2-chloro-2-propene-1-ol, 3-chloro-propene-1-ol;isomers thereof; and/or derivatives thereof; and mixtures thereof. To becertain these are volatile components, which without carefulfractionation, may contaminate distilled DCH streams. The currentprocess reduces these levels over those produced in the prior art. Forthe purpose of clarity, high boiling components which contain chlorine,for example MCH intermediates and chlorinated ethers of glycerin,although produced at lower levels in the current invention, are not tobe considered as volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products. Highboiling components such as these may be recycled or purged from theprocess at some point in a continuous mode of operation.

In an embodiment of the present invention where themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon is the starting material, asopposed to an ester of the multi-hydroxylated aliphatic hydrocarbon as astarting material, it is preferred that the formation of chlorohydrin bepromoted by the presence of a catalyst. In another embodiment of thepresent invention, where the ester of the multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon is used as the starting material, preferably a partialester, the catalyst exists inherently in the ester, and therefore theuse of a separate catalyst component is optional. However, an additionalcatalyst may still be included in the present process to further promoteconversion to the desired products. Additional catalyst may also be usedin the case where the starting material includes a combination ofesterified and nonesterifed multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons.

When a catalyst is used in the superatmospheric pressure process of thepresent invention, the catalyst may be for example a carboxylic acid; ananhydride; an acid chloride; an ester; a lactone; a lactam; an amide; ametal organic compound such as sodium acetate; or a combination thereof.Any compound that is convertible to a carboxylic acid or afunctionalized carboxylic acid under the reaction conditions of thepresent invention may also be used.

A preferred carboxylic acid for the superatmospheric pressure process isan acid with a functional group consisting of a halogen, an amine, analcohol, an alkylated amine, a sulfhydryl, an aryl group or an alkylgroup, or combinations thereof, wherein this moiety is not stericallyhindering the carboxylic acid group. A preferred acid for this presentprocess is acetic acid.

Examples of carboxylic acids usefulness as a catalyst in the presentinvention include, acetic acid, propionic acid, 4-methylvaleric acid,adipic acid, 4-droxyphenylacetic acid, 6-chlorohexanoic acid,4-aminobutyric acid, hexanoic acid, heptanoic acid,4-dimethylaminobutyric acid, 6-aminohexanoic acid, 6-hydroxyhexanoicacid, 4-aminophenylacetic acid, 4-trimethylammonium butyric acidchloride, polyacrylic acid, polyethylene grafted with acrylic acid, adivinylbenzene/methacrylic acid copolymer, and mixtures thereof.Examples of anhydrides include acetic anhydride, maleic anhydride, andmixtures thereof. Examples of acid chlorides include acetyl chloride,6-chlorohexanoyl chloride, 6-hydroxyhexanoyl chloride and mixturesthereof. Examples of esters include methyl acetate, methyl propionate,methyl pivalate, methyl butyrate, ethylene glycol monoacetate, ethyleneglycol diacetate, propanediol monoacetates, propanediol diacetates,glycerin monoacetates, glycerin diacetates, glycerin triacetate, aglycerin ester of a carboxylic acid (including glycerin mono-, di-, andtri-esters), and combinations thereof. Examples of most preferredlactones include ε-caprolactone, γ-butyrolactone, δ-valerolactone andmixtures thereof. An example of a lactam is ε-caprolactam. Zinc acetateis an example of a metal organic compound.

A preferred catalyst used in the present invention is a carboxylic acid,an ester of a carboxylic acid, or a combination thereof, particularly anester or acid having a boiling point higher than that of the desiredhighest boiling chlorohydrin that is formed in the reaction mixture sothat the chlorohydrin can be removed without removing the catalyst.Catalysts which meet this definition and are useful in the presentinvention include for example, polyacrylic acid, glycerin esters ofcarboxylic acids (including glycerin mono-, di-, and tri-esters),polyethylene grafted with acrylic acid, 6-chlorohexanoic acid,4-chlorobutanoic acid, caprolactone, heptanoic acid,4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, 4-aminophenylacetic acid, 6-hydroxyhexanoicacid, 4-aminobutyric acid, 4-trimethylammoniumbutyric acid chloride,stearic acid, 5-chlorovaleric acid, 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid,4-aminophenylacetic acid, and mixtures thereof.

Carboxylic acids, RCOOH, catalyze the hydrochlorination ofmultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons to chlorohydrins. The specificcarboxylic acid catalyst chosen for the process of the present inventionmay be based upon a number of factors including for example, itsefficacy as a catalyst, its cost, its stability to reaction conditions,and its physical properties. The particular process, and process schemein which the catalyst is to be employed may also be a factor inselecting the particular catalyst for the present process. The “R”groups of the carboxylic acid may be chosen from hydrogen or hydrocarbylgroups, including alkyl, aryl, aralkyl, and alkaryl. The hydrocarbylgroups may be linear, branched or cyclic, and may be substituted orun-substituted. Permissible substituents include any functional groupthat does not detrimentally interfere with the performance of thecatalyst, and may include heteroatoms. Non-limiting examples ofpermissible functional groups include chloride, bromide, iodide,hydroxyl, phenol, ether, amide, primary amine, secondary amine, tertiaryamine, quaternary ammonium, sulfonate, sulfonic acid, phosphonate, andphosphonic acid.

The carboxylic acids useful in the present invention may be monobasicsuch as acetic acid, formic acid, propionic acid, isobutyric acid,hexanoic acid, heptanoic acid, oleic acid, or stearic acid; or polybasicsuch as succinic acid, adipic acid, or terephthalic acid. Examples ofaralkyl carboxylic acids include phenylacetic acid and4-aminophenylacetic acid. Examples of substituted carboxylic acidsinclude 4-aminobutyric acid, 4-dimethylaminobutyric acid, 6-aminocaproicacid, 4-aminophenylacetic acid, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, lactic acid,glycolic acid, 4-dimethylaminobutyric acid, and4-trimethylammoniumbutyric acid. Additionally, materials that can beconverted into carboxylic acids under reaction conditions, including forexample carboxylic acid halides, such as acetyl chloride; carboxylicacid anhydrides such as acetic anhydride; carboxylic acid esters such asmethyl acetate; multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon acetates such asglycerol 1,2-diacetate; carboxylic acid amides such as ε-caprolactam andγ-butyrolactam; and carboxylic acid lactones such as γ-butyrolactone,δ-valerolactone and ε-caprolactone may also be employed in the presentinvention. Mixtures of carboxylic acids may also be used in the presentinvention.

Some carboxylic acid catalysts that may be used in the present inventionare less effective than others in the hydrochlorination process of thepresent invention, such as those bearing sterically demandingsubstituents close to the carboxylic acid group, for example2,2-dimethylbutyric acid, sterically hindered 2-substituted benzoicacids such as 2-aminobenzoic acid and 2-methylaminobenzoic acid. Forthis reason, carboxylic acids that are sterically unencumbered aroundthe carboxylic acid group are more preferred.

In the process of the present invention utilizing superatmosphericpartial pressure of HCl conditions, preferred acid catalysts used in thepresent invention include for example acetic acid, propionic acid,butyric acid, isobutyric acid, hexanoic acid, heptanoic acid,4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, 4-aminophenylacetic acid, 4-aminobutyricacid, 4-dimethylaminobutyric acid, 4-trimethylammonium butyric acidchloride, succinic acid, 6-chlorohexanoic acid, 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid,and mixtures thereof.

In another embodiment of the present invention, some of the catalysts ofthe present invention that work in the superatmospheric pressure processdescribed above may also work surprisingly well at atmospheric andsubatmospheric pressure conditions with or without water removal.Accordingly, one embodiment of the present invention is directed to aprocess for producing a chlorohydrin, an ester of a chlorohydrin, or amixture thereof comprising the step of contacting amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, an ester of amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, or a mixture thereof with asource of a superatmospheric atmospheric or subatmospheric partialpressure of hydrogen chloride to produce a chlorohydrin, an ester of achlorohydrin, or a mixture thereof, in the presence of a catalyst,wherein the catalyst (i) is a carboxylate derivative having from two toabout 20 carbon atoms and containing at least one functional groupselected from the group comprising an amine, an alcohol, a halogen, ansulfhydryl, an ether, an ester, or a combination thereof, wherein thefunctional group is attached no closer to the acid function than thealpha carbon; or a precursor thereto; (ii) is less volatile than thechlorohydrin, ester of a chlorohydrin, or a mixture thereof; and (iii)contains heteroatom substituents.

One embodiment of the catalyst structure of the present invention isgenerally represented by Formula (a) shown below wherein the functionalgroup “R” includes a functional group comprising an amine, an alcohol, ahalogen, a sulfhydryl, an ether; or an alkyl, an aryl or alkaryl groupof from 1 to about 20 carbon atoms containing said functional group; ora combination thereof; and wherein the functional group “R” may includea hydrogen, an alkali, an alkali earth or a transition metal or ahydrocarbon functional group.

In accordance with this embodiment of the present invention, certaincatalysts may also be advantageously employed at superatmospheric,atmospheric or sub-atmospheric pressure, and particularly incircumstances where water is continuously or periodically removed fromthe reaction mixture to drive conversion to desirably higher levels. Forexample, the hydrochlorination of glycerol reaction can be practiced bysparging hydrogen chloride gas through a mixture of amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon and a catalyst. In such aprocess, a volatile catalyst, such as acetic acid, may be at leastpartially removed from the reaction solution by the hydrogen chloridegas being sparged through the solution and may be lost from the reactionmedium. The conversion of the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon todesired chlorohydrins may consequently be slowed because the catalystconcentration is reduced. In such a process, the use of less volatilecatalysts, such as 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid, 4-aminobutyric acid; dimethyl4-aminobutyric acid; 6-chlorohexanoic acid; caprolactone; carboxylicacid amides such as ε-caprolactam and γ-butyrolactam; carboxylic acidlactones such as γ-butyrolactone, δ-valerolactone and ε-caprolactone;caprolactam; 4-hydroxyphenyl acetic acid; 6-aminocaproic acid;4-aminophenylacetic acid; lactic acid; glycolic acid;4-dimethylaminobutyric acid; 4-trimethylammoniumbutyric acid; andcombination thereof; and the like may be preferred. It is most desirableto employ a catalyst, under these atmospheric or subatmosphericconditions, that is less volatile than the desired chlorohydrin beingproduced. Furthermore, it is desirable that the catalyst be fullymiscible, with the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon employed. Ifthe catalyst is not fully miscible, it may form a second phase and thefull catalytic effect may not be realized. For this reason, it may bedesirable that the catalyst contain polar heteroatom substituents suchas hydroxyl, amino or substituted amino, or halide groups, which renderthe catalyst miscible with the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon,for example, glycerol.

The choice of a catalyst, for example a carboxylic acid catalyst, foruse in the process of the present invention may also be governed by thespecific process scheme employed for multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon hydrochlorination. For example, in a once-through processwhere a multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon is reacted to as high aconversion as possible to the desired chlorohydrin, which then isfurther converted to other products without separation from thecatalyst, the carboxylic acid catalyst is subsequently not utilizedfurther. In such a process scheme, it is desirable that the carboxylicacid be inexpensive, in addition to being effective. A preferredcarboxylic acid catalyst in such a situation would be for example aceticacid.

In a recycle process, for example, wherein the produced chlorohydrinsare separated from the carboxylic acid catalyst before furtherprocessing or use, the carboxylic acid catalyst is additionally chosenbased on the ease of separation of the catalyst, and its esters with thereaction products, from the desired chlorohydrin products. In such acase, it may be preferable to employ a heavy (i.e. lower volatility)acid so that it can be readily recycled to the reactor with unreactedglycerol or intermediate monochlorohydrins for further reaction.Suitable heavy acids useful in the present invention include for example4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, heptanoic acid, 4-aminobutyric acid,caprolactone, 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid, 6-chlorohexanoic acid,4-dimethylaminobutyric acid, 4-trimethylammoniumbutyric acid chloride,and mixtures thereof. A recycle process would likely be performed in acontinuous or semi-continuous fashion.

It is also preferred that the acid, or its esters with themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon being hydrochlorinated, or itsesters with the reaction intermediates or reaction products be misciblein the reaction solution. For this reason it may be desirable to selectthe carboxylic acid catalyst taking these solubility constraints intoconsideration. Thus, for example, if the multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon being hydrochlorinated is very polar, such as glycerol, somecarboxylic acid catalysts would exhibit less than complete solubility,and would form two phases upon mixing. In such a case, a more miscibleacid catalyst, such as acetic acid or 4-aminobutyric acid may bedesirable.

The catalysts useful in the present invention are effective over a broadrange of concentrations, for example from about 0.01 mole % to about99.9 mol % based upon the moles of multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon, preferably from about 0.1 mole % to about 67 mole %, morepreferably from about 0.5 mole % to about 50 mole % and most preferablyfrom about 1 mole % to about 40 mole %. The specific concentration ofcatalyst employed in the present invention may depend upon the specificcatalyst employed in the present invention and the process scheme inwhich such catalyst is employed.

For example, in a once-through process where the catalyst is used onlyonce and then discarded, it is preferred to employ a low concentrationof a highly active catalyst. In addition, it may be desirable to employan inexpensive catalyst. In such a process, concentrations of forexample, from about 0.01 mole % to about 10 mole % based on themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon may be used, preferably fromabout 0.1 mole % to about 6 mole %, more preferably from about 1 mole %to about 5 mole %.

In process schemes, for example, where the catalyst is recycled and usedrepeatedly, it may be desirable to employ higher concentrations thanwith a catalyst that is discarded. Such recycled catalysts may be usedfrom about 1 mole % to about 99.9 mole % based on themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, preferably from about 5 mole %to about 70 mole %, more preferably from about 5 mole % to about 50 mole%, although these concentrations are to be considered non-limiting.Higher catalysts concentrations may be desirably employed to reduce thereaction time, minimize the size of process equipment and reduce theformation of undesirable, uncatalyzed side products.

Generally, it is preferred that the process of the present invention iscarried out under superatmospheric pressure conditions.“Superatmospheric pressure” herein means that the hydrogen chloride(HCl) partial pressure is above atmospheric pressure, i.e. 15 psia orgreater. Generally, the hydrogen chloride partial pressure employed inthe process of the present invention is at least about 15 psia HCl orgreater. Preferably, the pressure of the present process is not lessthan about 25 psia, more preferably not less than about 35 psia HCl, andmost preferably not less than about 55 psia; and preferably not greaterthan about 1000 psia HCl, more preferably not greater than about 600psia, and most preferably not greater than about 150 psia.

The HCl used in the present invention is most preferably anhydrous. TheHCl composition can range from 100 volume % hydrogen chloride to about50 volume % hydrogen chloride. Preferably, the HCl feed composition isgreater than about 50 volume % HCl, more preferably greater than about90 volume % HCl, and most preferably greater than about 99 volume % HCl.

The temperatures useful in the practice of the process of the presentinvention are sufficient to give economical reaction rates, but not sohigh that starting material, product or catalyst stability becomecompromised. Furthermore, high temperatures increase the rate ofundesirable uncatalyzed reactions, such as non-selectiveover-chlorination, and can result in increased rates of equipmentcorrosion. Useful temperatures in the present invention generally may befrom about 25° C. to about 300° C., preferably from about 25° C. toabout 200° C., more preferably from about 30° C. to about 160° C., evenmore preferably from about 40° C. to about 150° C., and most preferablyfrom about 50° C. to about 140° C.

The reaction of the superatmospheric pressure process of the presentinvention is advantageously rapid and may be carried out for a timeperiod of less than about 12 hours, preferably less than about 5 hours,more preferably less than about 3 hours and most preferably less thanabout 2 hours. At longer reaction times, such as above about 12 hours,the process begins to form RCls and other over-chlorinated by-products.

Surprisingly, it has been discovered that high per-pass yields and highselectivity can be achieved using the superatmospheric pressure processof the present invention. For example, a per-pass yield for thechlorohydrin based on the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon ofgreater than about 80%, preferably greater than about 85%, morepreferably greater than about 90%, and most preferably greater thanabout 93% can be achieved by the present invention. For example, a highselectivity of greater than about 80%, preferably greater than about85%, more preferably greater than about 90%, and most preferably greaterthan about 93% of chlorohydrins can be achieved by the process of thepresent invention. Of course, yields can be increased by recyclingreaction intermediates.

For example, when the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon used inthe present invention is glycerol, recycling intermediatemonochlorohydrins can increase the ultimate yield of dichlorohydrinsachieved. Moreover, unlike many of the processes of the prior art, waterremoval is not an essential feature of the process of the presentinvention in carrying out the reaction which forms the chlorohydrins. Infact, the reaction of the present invention is preferentially carriedout in the absence of water removal such as azeotropic removal of water.

In the superatmospheric pressure process of the present invention, it isalso not necessary to use starting materials that are free ofcontaminants such as water, salts or organic impurities other thanmultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons. Accordingly, the startingmaterials may contain, generally, no more than about 50 weight percentof such contaminants. For example, crude 1,2,3-propanetriol (crudeglycerol) that may contain water (from about 5% to about 25% weightpercent), alkali (for example, sodium or potassium) or alkaline earth(for example, calcium or magnesium) metal salts (from about 1% to about20% by weight), and/or alkali carboxylate salts (from about 1% to about5% by weight), can also be used in the present invention effectively toproduce the desired product. Consequently, the process of the presentinvention is a particularly economical approach.

In one embodiment of the process of the present invention,1,2,3-propanetriol (glycerol) is placed in a closed vessel, and heatedand pressurized under an atmosphere of HCl gas in the presence of theaforementioned catalytic amount of a carboxylic acid or ester thereof.Under the preferred conditions of the process, the major product is1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol (for example, >90% yield), with minor amounts(for example, <10% total yield) of the following products:1-chloro-2,3-propanediol, 2-chloro-1,3-propanediol and2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol; and no detectable amounts (less than 200 ppm)of 1,2,3-trichloropropane. Advantageously, both the major and minordichlorinated products (1,3-dichloro-propan-2-ol and2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol) are precursors to epichlorohydrin. Thedichlorinated products can readily be converted to epichlorohydrin byreaction with base, as is well-known in the art.

The present invention may include various process schemes, including forexample batch, semi-batch, or continuous. In one embodiment, forexample, the present invention includes the hydrochlorination of amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon by reaction with hydrogenchloride. The multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon may be employedneat or diluted in an appropriate solvent. Such solvents may include forexample water and alcohols. It may be preferred to purify themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon before it is employed in thehydrochlorination reaction by removing contaminants, including water,organic materials or inorganic materials before use. This purificationmay include well known purification techniques such as distillation,extraction, absorption, centrifugation, or other appropriate methods.The multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon is generally fed to theprocess as a liquid although this is not absolutely necessary.

The hydrogen chloride employed in the process is preferably gaseous. Thehydrogen chloride may, however, be diluted in a solvent such as analcohol (for example methanol); or in a carrier gas such as nitrogen, ifdesired. Optionally, the hydrogen chloride may be purified before use toremove any undesirable contaminants. It is preferred that the hydrogenchloride be substantially anhydrous although some amounts (for exampleless than about 50 mole %, preferably less than about 20 mole %, morepreferably less than about 10 mole %, even more preferably less thanabout 5 mole %, most preferably less than about 3 mole %) of waterpresent in the hydrogen chloride are not excessively detrimental. Thehydrogen chloride is fed to the process equipment in any suitablemanner. It is preferred that the process equipment is designed to ensuregood dispersal of the hydrogen chloride throughout the hydrochlorinationreactor that is employed in the present process. Therefore, single ormultiple spargers, baffles and efficient stirring mechanisms aredesirable.

The catalyst employed may be fed to the process equipment independently,or as a mixture with, or component of, the multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon or hydrogen chloride feeds.

The equipment useful for the hydrochlorination reaction of the presentinvention may be any well-known equipment in the art and should becapable of containing the reaction mixture at the conditions of thehydrochlorination. Suitable equipment may be fabricated of materialswhich are resistant to corrosion by the process components, and mayinclude for example, metals, such as tantalum, suitable metallic alloyssuch as Hastalloy C©, or glass-lined equipment. Suitable equipment mayinclude, for example, single or multiple stirred tanks, tubes or pipes,or combinations thereof.

In an exemplifying batch process, the multihydroxylated aliphatichydrocarbon and hydrochlorination catalyst are charged to a reactor.Hydrogen chloride is then added to the desired pressure and the reactorcontents heated to the desired temperature for the desired length oftime. The reactor contents are then discharged from the reactor andeither purified or sent to other equipment for further processing, or tostorage.

In an illustrative semi-batch process, one or more of the reagents isfed to a reactor over a period of time throughout the reaction whileother reagents are fed only at the start of the reaction. In such aprocess, for example, the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon andcatalyst may be fed in a single batch to a hydrochlorination reactor,which is then held at reaction conditions for a suitable time, whilehydrogen chloride is fed continuously throughout the reaction at thedesired rate, which may be at constant flow, or constant pressure. Afterthe reaction, the hydrogen chloride feed can be terminated and thereactor contents may be discharged for storage, purification or furtherprocessing.

In the large-scale production of chemicals it is often desirable toemploy a continuous process since the economic advantage of doing so isusually greater than for batch processing. The continuous process maybe, for example, a single-pass or a recycle process. In a single-passprocess, one or more of the reagents pass through the process equipmentonce, and then the resulting effluent from the reactor is sent forpurification or further processing. In such a scheme, themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon and catalyst may be fed to theequipment and hydrogen chloride added as desired at a single point or atmultiple points throughout the process equipment, which may includecontinuous stirred tank reactors, tubes, pipes or combinations thereof.

Alternatively, the catalyst employed may be a solid which is retainedwithin the process equipment by means of a filter or equivalent device.The reagents and catalysts are fed at such a rate that the residencetime in the process equipment is appropriate to achieve a desiredconversion of the multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon to products.The material exiting the process equipment is sent to storage, forpurification or further processing, as desired. In such a process, it isgenerally desirable to convert as much multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon to desired product as possible.

In a continuous recycle process, one or more of the unreactedmultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon, reaction intermediates,hydrogen chloride, or catalyst exiting from the process equipment arerecycled back to a point earlier in the process. In this manner, rawmaterial efficiencies are maximized or catalysts reused. Since catalystsare reused in such a process scheme, it may be desirable to employ thecatalysts in a higher concentration than they are employed in asingle-pass process where they are often discarded. This may result infaster reactions, or smaller process equipment, which results in lowercapital costs for the equipment employed.

Removal of the desired product from the catalysts or other processcomponents can be achieved in a variety of ways. It may be possible toachieve the separation, for example, by vaporization in a continuousfashion, either directly from the hydrochlorination reactor, or aseparate piece of equipment such as a vaporizer or a distillationcolumn. In such a case, a catalyst that is less volatile than thedesired product would be employed, so that the catalyst is retainedwithin the process equipment. Alternatively, a solid catalyst may beemployed, and the separation may be achieved, for example, byfiltration, centrifugation or vaporization. Liquid extraction,absorption or chemical reaction may also be employed in some cases torecycle catalysts or reaction intermediates.

In one embodiment of the present invention, amultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon is hydrochlorinated using ahydrochlorination catalyst chosen to be less volatile than the desiredhydrochlorination products. After the hydrochlorination reaction,additional multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon is added to thereaction products, excess starting materials, reaction intermediates andcatalyst. It is thought that this liberates some of the desiredhydrochlorination product which may have existed as an ester of thecatalyst, so that the desired product can be more completely recoveredfrom the reaction solution by vaporization. After recovery of thedesired hydrochlorination product, the remainder of the process streamcan be recycled to the hydrochlorination stream. This process schemealso may have the advantage of minimizing the amount of hydrogenchloride lost since much of that remaining in the process stream afteraddition of multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon would be consumed byreaction with the newly added multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon.

The particular process scheme employed may depend upon many factorsincluding, for example, the identity, cost and purity of themultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon being hydochlorinated, thespecific process conditions employed, the separations required to purifythe product, and other factors. The examples of processes describedherein are not to be considered as limiting the present invention.

FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 show three non-limiting embodiments of thehydrochlorinated process of the present invention. The examplesillustrating the present invention process shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 areonly preferred embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 1, for example, shows a process of the present invention generallyindicated by numeral 10, wherein a multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbon such as a glycerol feed stream, 11, is introduced into areaction vessel, 15. The reaction vessel 15, may be of any well-knownsuitable type, including for example, one or more continuous stirredtank reactors (CSTRs) or tubular reactors; or combinations thereof.

Also introduced to vessel 15, are a hydrogen chloride feed stream, 12,and a carboxylic acid or carboxylic acid precursor catalyst feed stream,13. Streams 12 and 13 may be introduced into vessel 15 either separatelyor together. In addition, optionally, all of the streams 11, 12, and 13may be combined together into one feed stream. Any of the streams 11,12, or 13, may be introduced at a single point or at multiple points ofvessel 15. In vessel 15, glycerol is partially or fully converted to itsesters with the carboxylic acid catalyst, monochlorohydrins anddichlorohydrins and their esters. Stream 14, containing, for exampledichlorohydrins, monochlorohydrins, unreacted glycerol, and theiresters, water, unreacted hydrogen chloride and catalyst exits vessel 15,and may be sent to storage, to further processing such as purification,or to other equipment for further reaction.

For example, in one embodiment, stream 14, may be reacted with a base toform epichlorohydrin. The carboxylic acid catalyst in such a process maybe chosen based on its efficacy at low concentration and its low cost.For example, the carboxylic acid may be acetic acid or propionic acid.

FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the process of the present inventiongenerally indicated by numeral 20, in which a feed stream 21 containinga multihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbon such as a glycerol is fed tovessel 26, which may be one or more CSTRs or tubular reactors, orcombinations thereof. Also fed to vessel 26 is feed stream 22,containing hydrogen chloride. Also fed to vessel 26 is a recycle stream25, recycled from vessel 27, containing, for example, unreactedglycerol, monochlorohydrins and their esters with the catalyst, which isalso recycled in this stream 25.

In vessel 26, glycerol is converted to monochlorohydrins and theiresters; and monochlorohydrins are converted to dichlorohydrins and theiresters. Stream 23, containing, for example, dichlorohydrins,monochlorohydrins, unreacted glycerol and their esters with thecarboxylic acid catalyst, water, unreacted hydrogen chloride andcatalyst exits vessel 26, and is fed to vessel 27. In vessel 27, atleast some of the desired dichlorohydrins, water, and unreacted hydrogenchloride, as stream 24, are separated from monochlorohydrins and theiresters, unreacted glycerol and its esters and catalyst, as recyclestream 25, which is recycled to vessel 26. Stream 25 may also optionallycontain some dichlorohydrins and their esters. Optionally, a purgestream may also exit vessel 27 as a purge stream 28 from the recyclestream 25 and/or from the vessel 27 via purge stream 29. The purgestream may comprise compositions of the recycle stream; or salts orheavies that are either fed in with the crudemultihydroxylated-aliphatic hydrocarbons or produced in the process.

Vessel 27 may comprise any well-known suitable separation vessel,including one or more distillation columns, flash vessels, extraction,absorption columns, centrifuges, crystallizers, membrane separators,cyclones, evaporators, heat exchangers or filters; or any suitable knownseparation apparatuses known in the art. Product stream 24 may be sentto storage, to further processing for example purification, or to afurther reaction, for example, conversion to epichlorohydrin. In oneexample of this process scheme, the catalyst may be chosen such that itschemical or physical properties result in a ready separation of thecatalyst or its esters from the desired dichlorohydrins. For example,the catalyst selected for this process scheme may be 6-chlorohexanoicacid, caprolactone, 4-chlorobutyric acid, stearic acid, or4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of the process of the present inventiongenerally indicated by numeral 30, in which a vessel 36 is fed with afeed stream 31, containing hydrogen chloride; and a recycle streamcontaining glycerol, glycerol esters, monochlorohydrin and their estersand catalyst, via stream 35. In vessel 36, which may comprise one ormore CSTRs, one or more tubular reactors or combinations thereof,glycerol and monochlorohydrins are converted to dichlorohydins. Stream32, containing, for example, dichlorohydrins, monochlorohydrins,glycerol and their esters, catalyst, unreacted hydrogen chloride andwater exists vessel 36 and is fed to vessel 37. Also fed to vessel 37 isfeed stream 33, containing glycerol.

In vessel 37, glycerol reacts with the esters of monochlorohydrins anddichlorohydins to substantially liberate the free monochlorohydrins anddichlorohydins and forming glycerol esters. Additionally, at least someof the unreacted hydrogen chloride that enters vessel 37 via stream 32is also consumed to form mainly monochlorohydrins. Vessel 37 may alsoserve as a means to separate the desired dichlorohydrins from unreactedmonochlorohydrins and glycerol and their esters. Vessel 37 may include,for example, one or more centrifuges, crystallizers, membraneseparators, cyclones, evaporators, heat exchangers, filters,distillation columns, flash vessels, extractors, or any other separationequipment; or vessel 37 may be, for example, a combination of a stirredtank, tubular reactor or similar vessel with the aforementionedseparation equipment. Product stream 34, exiting vessel 37 andcontaining dichlorohydrins, water and residual hydrogen chloride may besent to storage, to further processing such as purification, or to aprocess for further reaction, for example to a reaction process forpreparing epichlorohydrin. Stream 35, containing glycerol andmonochlorohydrins and their esters and catalyst exits vessel 37 to berecycled, as stream 35, to the vessel 36. Optionally, a purge stream mayalso exit vessel 37 as a purge stream 38 from the recycle stream 35and/or from the vessel 37 via purge stream 39. The purge stream maycomprise compositions of the recycle stream; or salts or heavies thatare either fed in with the crude multihydroxylated-aliphatichydrocarbons or produced in the process.

Some or all of the equipment described above with reference to FIGS. 1,2 and 3 may be made of corrosion resistant materials which are wellknown in the art.

In the process configuration of FIG. 3, it may be desirable to userelatively large amounts of catalyst, for example from about 10 mole %to about 70 mole % based on glycerol so that the rate of thehydrochlorination reaction in vessel 36 is very fast, and the equipmentconsequently small. It is also preferred that the catalyst, in theprocess configuration of FIG. 3, possess chemical or physical propertiessuch that the separation in vessel 37 is facilitated, for example, theuse of a catalyst that boils at a temperature substantially below thatat which the lowest boiling dichlorohydrins boils may be preferred whenthe separation method is distillation. Examples of such catalystsinclude 6-chlorohexanoic acid, heptanoic acid, and 4-hydroxyphenylaceticacid.

The present invention also includes a novel composition made by theprocess of the present invention. The compositions of the presentinvention made by the present process includes for example,dichlorohydrins made from glycerol. Such dichlorohydrins made by thepresent process are useful in that they comprise high concentration ofdichlorohydins, (i.e. 1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol and2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol) high ratios of the two isomers ofdichlorohydins and their esters, i.e. high ratios of1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol and esters to 2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol andesters, low concentrations of glycerol and its esters andmonochlorohydrins, i.e. 2-chloro-1,3-propanediol and1-chloro-2,3-propanediol and their esters, and low concentrations ofundesirable byproducts, i.e. 1,2,3-trichloropropane and chlorinatedglycerol oligomeric ethers, such as bis (3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyl)ether,and their esters.

The compositions of the present invention are useful in the manufactureof epichlorohydrin, giving high yields of high purity epichlorohydrin inshort reaction times with low levels of chlorinated by-products that aredifficult or expensive to dispose of.

As one embodiment and an illustration of the present invention, but notto be bound thereby, useful compositions (excluding water and inorganicimpurities) which may be made in accordance with the present invention,may be made for example from glycerol hydrochlorination. The followingabbreviations are used in the tables below: “1,3-Dichlorohydrin” is1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol; “2,3-dichlorohydrin” is2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol; “Monochlorohydrins” include:1-chloro-2,3-propanediol and 2-chloro-1,3-propanediol and mixturesthereof. Generally, such compositions include for example the followingcomponents, excluding fatty acid methyl esters and the like:

Component Mole % Glycerol and its esters from 0.1 to 1 Monochlorohydrinsand their esters from 4 to 10 1,3-Dichlorohydrin and its esters greaterthan 80 2,3-Dichlorohydrin and its esters from 1 to 41,2,3-Trichloropropane less than 0.2 Chlorinated glycerol ethers andtheir esters less than 0.3

The 1,3-dichlorohydrin to 2,3-dichlorohydrin ratio in the abovecomposition is generally from about 8:1 to about 100:1.

Preferably, the composition of the present invention may be as follows:

Component Mole % Glycerol and its esters from 0.01 to 0.1Monochlorohydrins and their esters from 3 to 8 1,3-Dichlorohydrin andits esters greater than 85 2,3-Dichlorohydrin and its esters from 1 to 31,2,3-Trichloropropane less than 0.1 Chlorinated glycerol ethers andtheir less than 0.2 esters

More preferably, the composition of the present invention may be asfollows:

Component Mole % Glycerol and its esters from 0.001 to 0.1Monochlorohydrins and their esters from 2 to 7 1,3-Dichlorohydrin andits esters greater than 87 2,3-Dichlorohydrin and its esters from 1 to 21,2,3-Trichloropropane less than 0.05 Chlorinated glycerol ethers andtheir less than 0.15 esters

Most preferably, the composition of the present invention may be asfollows:

Component Mole % Glycerol and its esters less than 0.1 Monochlorohydrinsand their esters from 1 to 5 1,3-Dichlorohydrin and its esters greaterthan 90 2,3-Dichlorohydrin and its esters from 0.1 to 21,2,3-Trichloropropane less than 0.02 Chlorinated glycerol ethers andtheir less than 0.1 esters

The above compositions of the present invention are useful in themanufacture of epichlorohydrin. High selectivity to 1,3-dichlorohydrinand its esters relative to the selectivity to 2,3-dichlorohydrin and itsesters results in more efficient and faster formation of epichlorohydinupon reaction with caustic. In addition, low levels of trichloropropane(TCP) in the present composition are desired because it minimizes thecost of handling and disposing of TCP. Low levels of glycerol andmonochlorohydrins are also desired in the present composition tomaximize glycerol raw material efficiency through high conversions tothe desired dichlorohydrins.

The following examples are for illustrative purposes only and are notintended to limit the scope of the present invention.

EXAMPLE 1 Preparation of a Chlorohydrin from Glycerol

To a 100 mL Hastelloy C™ Parr reactor equipped with a Magnedrivestirrer, internal cooling coils, and a thermocouple were added glycerol(30.0 g, obtained from Sigma-Aldrich Chemical Corporation) and glacialacetic acid (4.5 g, obtained from JT Baker Corporation). The reactor wassealed, pressurized to 90 psig with anhydrous hydrogen chloride gas(Airgas Corporation), and heated to 93° C. for 90 minutes and maintainedat 90 psig with anhydrous hydrogen chloride gas, after which the reactorwas cooled and vented at room temperature (about 25° C.). The reactorcontents (65.9 g) were collected, analyzed by gas chromatography (GC),and found to contain the following products: 1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol andits acetate ester (total 92.6 mole %) and 2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol andits acetate ester (total 1.7 mole %). Additionally, a number ofmonochlorinated compounds (total 4.4 mole %) were detected as well asunreacted glycerol and its esters (total 1.0 mole %). Notrichloropropane was detected (with a detection limit of 200 ppm).

EXAMPLE 2 Preparation of a Chlorohydrin from Glycerol/Glycerol EsterMixture

To a 200 mL Hastelloy C™ high pressure reactor was added a 10 mL glassvolumetric flask containing dry glycerol (Aldrich pre-dried over molsieves, 91 mg, 0.99 mmol), and triacetin (Aldrich, the tri-acetate esterof glycerol, 457 mg, 2.10 mmole). The reactor was sealed and pressurizedwith nitrogen to 40 psig (three pressure cycles) and was brought to 110°C. with stirring after nitrogen venting. Anhydrous HCl was introduced ata constant pressure of 76 psig and the reaction was allowed to proceedfor 3 hours. The reactor was vented providing a product that was foundto contain 25.90 area percent 1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol, 68.34 areapercent 1,3-dichloro-2-acetoxypropane, 1.57 area percent1,2-dichloro-3-acetoxypropane, 2.86 area percent2-chloropropane-1,3-diacetoxypropane and no detectable glycerol,triacetin or 1,2,3-trichloropropane as determined by GC flame ionizationdetection analysis.

EXAMPLE 3 Preparation of a Chlorohydrin from Crude Glycerol

To a 100 mL Hastelloy™ C Parr reactor equipped with a Magnedrivestirrer, internal cooling coils, and a thermocouple, were added crudeglycerol (30.0 g, obtained from Interwest Corporation) and glacialacetic acid (0.6 g, obtained from JT Baker Corporation). The reactor wassealed, pressurized to 120 psig with anhydrous hydrogen chloride gas(Airgas Corporation), and heated to 120° C. for 90 minutes whilemaintaining the pressure at 120 psig with the anhydrous hydrogenchloride gas. After this time, the reactor was cooled and vented at roomtemperature. The reactor contents (57.2 g) were collected as a mobileliquid containing a suspended white solid.

The procedure as described above was repeated and 58.0 g of reactorcontents were collected from a second reaction. The two reactionproducts (57.2 g and 58.0 g) were then combined.

After filtration to remove the white solids, sodium and potassium saltsintroduced with the crude glycerol, the filtrate was analyzed by gaschromatography and found to contain 1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol (95.3 wt %),2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol (2.6 wt %), 2-acetoxy-1,3-dichloropropane (0.7wt %), and 1-acetoxy-2,3-dichloropropane (0.1 wt %). Additionally, anumber of acetoxychloropropanols (0.87 wt %) were detected. No unreactedglycerol nor its esters, nor trichloropropanol were detected.

EXAMPLES 4-41

The following examples were performed in a 100 mL, Hastalloy C™ Parrautoclave equipped with a Magnedrive stirrer, a thermocouple andinternal cooling coils. Glycerol (30 g, 326 mmol, Aldrich 99%), wasadded to the reactor, along with a catalyst (10 mmols) or otheradditives as described in Table I below, and water (3.0 g, 167 mmols),and then the reactor was sealed. The mass of the reactor and contentswere recorded. The reactor was stirred and ice-cooled water was cycledthrough the cooling coils. Hydrogen chloride gas (Airgas Corporation) atthe desired pressure of 110 psig was admitted to the reactor, typicallyresulting in a 15-25° C. exotherm. The reactor was heated to the desiredtemperature of 110° C., and the reaction allowed to proceed for fourhours, while hydrogen chloride gas was fed continuously at the setpressure as the hydrogen chloride gas was consumed by reaction. The massof hydrogen chloride fed to the reactor was measured by recoding themass of the cylinder throughout the reaction.

After the desired reaction time of four hours had elapsed, the hydrogenchloride feed was ceased, and the reactor and contents cooled to roomtemperature. The reactor was then vented and the mass of the reactor andcontents were recorded. The reaction product was analyzed by gaschromatography. Selectivities to dichlorohydrins are reported as100%×moles of dichlorohydrins/moles of glycerol charged.

The following abbreviations are used herein: “1,3-DCH” is1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol; “2,3-DCH” is 2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol; “1-MCH”is 1-chloro-2,3-propanediol; “2-MCH” is 2-chloro-1,3-propanediol; “BZIMBr” is n-butylmethylimidazolium bromide; “BZIM Cl” isn-butylmethylimidazolium chloride; “Bu4NCl.H2O” is tetra-n-butylammoniumchloride hydrate; and “C16Me3NCl” is n-hexadecyltrimethylammoniumchloride.

TABLE I Molar Selectivities (%) 2,3- Example Catalyst 1,3-DCH DCH 1-MCHsum 4 Acetic acid 90.55 1.93 1.83 94.31 5 Hexanoic acid 90.67 1.91 0.7993.36 6 2,2-Dimethylbutyric acid 4.63 0.31 38.39 43.33 7 3-Methylvalericacid 59.49 1.44 27.31 88.24 8 Heptanoic acid 87.45 1.82 3.78 93.04 93,3-Dimethylbutyric acid 27.33 0.89 46.55 74.78 104-Trimethylammoniumbutyric acid 79.45 1.81 13.22 94.48 114-Dimethylaminobutyric acid 81.92 1.86 10.55 94.33 12 4-Aminobutyricacid 88.60 1.93 4.13 94.66 13 Glycine 28.74 0.79 66.71 96.24 14NNN-Trimethylglycine 5.19 0.26 43.87 49.32 15 NN-Dimethylglycine 5.370.24 46.95 52.56 16 Glycolic Acid 30.14 0.87 60.74 91.75 17 Lactic Acid53.79 1.26 36.33 91.38 18 4-Dimethylaminophenylacetic acid 72.84 1.6116.02 90.47 19 4-Aminophenylacetic acid 80.14 1.74 10.30 92.19 202-Aminobenzoic acid 5.24 0.29 35.30 40.83 21 2-Methylaminobenzoic acid3.99 0.24 30.53 34.75 22 4-Hydroxyphenylacetic acid 92.24 2.01 0.6894.94 23 Caprolactam 67.77 1.39 17.73 86.89 24 *Blank, No catalyst 3.380.17 31.43 34.98 25 4-Methylvaleric acid 88.32 1.97 0.54 90.83 264-Aminobenzoic acid 31.44 0.92 30.62 62.98 27 4-Hydroxybenzoic acid36.85 1.97 25.27 64.09 28 4-Dimethylaminobenzoic acid 31.07 0.90 35.1867.15 29 Heptanoic acid + 10 mmol BMIMBr 86.98 1.79 0.98 89.75 30Heptanoic acid + 10 mmol BMIMCl 89.95 1.85 1.07 92.86 31 Heptanoicacid + 50 mmol BMIM Cl 89.59 1.81 0.91 92.32 32 Heptanoic acid + 50 mmolBMIM Br 83.47 1.63 0.55 85.65 33 Heptanoic acid + 10 mmol Bu4NCl•H2O87.69 1.76 0.75 90.20 34 Heptanoic acid + 10 mmol C16Me3NCl 89.84 1.831.23 92.90 35 Phenylacetic acid 83.96 1.78 3.36 89.09 36epsilon-Caprolactone 93.69 1.93 0.56 96.17 37 Amberlite⁽¹⁾ IRC-50 14.590.46 66.16 81.22 38 Amberlite⁽¹⁾ IRP-64 10.93 0.39 61.07 72.39 396-Chlorohexanoic acid 86.09 1.81 0.21 88.10 40 beta-Butyrolactone 64.691.55 17.77 84.02 41 gamma-Butyrolactone 93.69 1.93 0.56 96.17 *Examplewithout catalyst ⁽¹⁾Amberlite ® is a registered trademark of Rohm andHaas Corporation. Amberlite IRC-50 and IRP-64 are weakly acidic ionexchange resins.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE A Glycerol Reaction to Dichlorohydrin with HCl,Acetic Acid and Toluene as Azeotroping Agent at Subatmospheric Pressure

To a 500 mL Wharton baffled 3-necked flask equipped with overhead airstirrer, HCl inlet frit, Dean Stark trap with condenser were addedglycerol (92.0 g, 1.00 mol), 5 mL of acetic acid (HOAc) and 200 mL oftoluene. The reaction under positive nitrogen flow, was heated to refluxwith slow purging (no rate determined or flow control) of anhydrous HCl.After 5 hours of reflux, some 23 mL of 6N aqueous HCl was collected andNMR analysis showed the resultant bottom phase to be >85%monochlorohydrin. After 3 hours another 5 mL HOAc was added and again at6 hours; each time water evolution was very rapid after addition (1-2mL/15 minutes in trap). The phases were miscible hot after 6 hours andthen separated to two phases on cooling. The resulting products wereidentified by NMR versus standards and a retainer stripped of mosttoluene was used to provide a 122 g sample of material. The sample wasanalyzed using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis.

The results of analysis and the chemical scheme is shown in Scheme 2below.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE B Glycerol Reaction to Dichlorohydrin with ExcessHCl Purge, Acetic Acid with No Azeotropic Water Removal and AtmosphericPressure

In this comparative example no attempt was made to rigorously removewater. To a 500 mL Wharton 3-necked flask equipped with overhead airstirrer, HCl inlet frit, and outlet to scrubber, was added 4 A sievedried glycerol (138.0 g, 1.50 mol), 3.8 g of HOAc (2.75% based onglycerin). This outlet tube was comprised of a non-chilled 16 inchstraight condenser (glass) connected to a 1/16 inch polyethylene outlettube (approximately 7 feet) that was flanged to a 3-foot water scrubbingtower filled with burled, ceramic saddles. The reaction under positivenitrogen flow, was heated to 100° C. and then slow purging(approximately 200 mg/minute) with anhydrous HCl was commenced. The rateand total amount of added HCl was as monitored by a weigh cell. Smallaliquots (for example 300 mg) of samples were taken through the side armat appropriate intervals to complete a crude kinetic conversion profilefrom which half-life could be obtained. The reaction internal reactiontemperature was held isothermal (100° C.±2° C.) with an temperaturecontroller. Over a 24 hour period, a total of 700 g of anhydrous HCl waspassed through the solution. The samples were analyzed using wt % GCassays and the final sample was also analyzed for water and HCl contentpotentiometrically to obtain a total mass balance. The resulting darkbrown reaction product (minus the 200 mg retainers) after 23.75 hours ofpurging was 218.5 g.

The results of analysis and the chemical scheme are shown in Scheme 3below. The conversion of glycerol to monochlorohydrins anddichlorohydrins is shown graphically in FIG. 4. In FIG. 4, “MCH” is thetotal mole % of monochlorohydrins: 3-chloro-2,3-propanediol and2-chloro-1,3-propanediol; “MCH-OAc” is the total mole % of acetateesters of MCH; and “DCH” is the total mole % of dichlorohydrins:1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol and 2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol.

EXAMPLE 42 Glycerol Reaction to Dichlorohydrin with Pressure HCl, AceticAcid and No Azeotropic Water Removal

After nitrogen purging (two 40 psig pressure/vent cycles), dry glycerin(30.0 g, 0.320 mole) containing 4 wt % acetic acid (1.2 g Aldrich) as acatalyst was subjected to static pressures 90-96 psig of anhydrous HClwith stirring and heating in a magnetically driven, 100 mL Hasteloy-CParr reactor. This reactor was equipped with an internal thermocouplewhich measured the internal solution temperature. External heating tothe reactor was provided by an immersion bath which was controlled witha temperature controller. At initial internal temperatures of 90° C., analmost immediate exotherm ensued and within 10 minutes the internalreaction temperature was 120-123° C. The exotherm was accompanied byrapid uptake of HCl. The immersion bath was raised to this temperaturefor 1.5-2 hours and HCl was monitored via a weigh cell (the cylinder)and a computer control system. After this period of time, virtually nomore HCl uptake was apparent (approximately 32.1 g uptake). The reactorwas cooled to room temperature, carefully vented to an HCl purge column,opened and the contents (68.0 g) were transferred to a glass bottle witha polyethylene screw-cap. Accurate H₂O, HCl and wt % organic balance wasobtained on this and other samples.

The results of analysis and the chemical scheme is shown in Scheme 4below.

A comparison of the results of Example 42 and Comparative Example B isshown in Table II below.

TABLE II Example 42 Comparative Example B Pressure HCl Atmospheric HCL32.1 g HCl 700 g HCl Component (Wt %) (Wt %) Acetic acid 3.6 0.441,3-DCH 53.74 57.78 2,3-DCH 1 1.11 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol ND* 9.982-chloro-1,3-propanediol 1.88 4.03 glycerol ND ND2-acetoxy-2,3-dichloropropane 4.75 0.34 1-acetoxy-2,3-dichloropropane0.43 ND 1-acetoxy3-chloro-2-propanol ND 0.42 acetoxychloropropanol 1.250.23 diacetoxychloropropane 0.3 ND Chloroether dimers (RCl's) 0.08 0.3water 16.8 17.65 HCl 14.97 7.7 Total mass balance 99.3 99.98 *ND = notdetected

Comparative Example B shows that prolonged reaction time and loss ofcatalysts is experienced in the atmospheric pressure example versus thesuperatmospheric pressure process. Also, unexpectedly, a greaterconversion of monochlorohydrin to dichlorohydrin is experienced in thesuperatmospheric case and less chloroether (RCl) is produced. A majorloss of HCl is experienced in Comparative Example B.

EXAMPLE 43

Ethylene glycol (501 mg, 8.07 mmol), 1,2-propylene glycol (519 mg, 6.82mmol) and glacial acetic acid (102 mg, 1.715 mmol) were placed in aglass vial along with a magnetic stir bar. The vial was placed a 200 mLHastelloy C™ pressure vessel. The pressure vessel was then pressurizedwith 40 psig of anhydrous HCl gas. The bottom of the vial was immersedin a water bath at 72-74° C. and stirring and pressure was maintainedfor 45 minutes. At the end of the reaction, the solution in the vial wastransparent and clear in color. The reaction afforded 1.893 g of crudeproduct containing water which was assayed by flame ionization detectiongas chromatography. The following products were assayed based uponretention time of known commercial standards: chloroethanol (35.62 area%), 1-chloropropan-2-ol (40.47 area %), 2-chloropropan-1-ol (6.47 area%), unconverted propanediol (3.00 area %), 2-chloro-1-acetoxyethane(5.09 area %), 1-chloro-2-cetoxypropane (4.45 area %) and2-chloro-1-acetoxypropane (0.75 area %).

EXAMPLES 44-51

The following experiments examining the effect of hydrogen chloridepressure on glycerol hydrochlorination were performed using 30 g ofglycerol, 3 g. of water, 12.6 mole % acetic acid. The reactiontemperature was 90° C. and the reaction time was 120 minutes. Hydrogenchloride pressure was as indicated in Table III and the selectivities tothe dichlorohydrins and their acetates are as indicated.

TABLE III 1,3-DCH Pressure 1,3-DCH Acetate 2,3-DCH (HCl) Yield YieldYield Example No. (psig) (mole %) (mole %) (mole %) 44 15 0.2 0.0 0.0 4520 3.2 0.1 0.1 46 25 5.0 0.0 0.1 47 30 10.2 0.1 0.2 48 40 33.5 0.4 0.649 55 49.4 0.1 0.9 50 80 82.0 2.2 1.4 51 100 88.7 2.5 1.5

EXAMPLE 52

The following example demonstrates formation of the novel composition ofthe present invention.

Glycerol (30 g, 326 mmols), water (3.0 g, 167 mmols) andepsilon-caprolactone (1.14 g, 10.0 mmols) were charged to a 100 ml Parrreactor, heated to 110° C. and pressurized with anhydrous hydrogenchloride to 110 psig. After 4 hours at these conditions, the reactionmixture had absorbed 34.0 grams of hydrogen chloride. The reactorcontents were discharged and analyzed and found to have the followingcomposition (excluding water and residual hydrogen chloride.

TABLE IV Component Moles Mole % 1,3-Dichlorohydrin (1,3-DCH) 0.305293.414 1-acetoxy-2,3-dichloropropane (2,3-DCH 0 0 Acetate)1-Acetoxy-3-chloropropan-2-ol (1-MCH 0 0 Acetate) 2,3-Dichlorohydrin(2,3-DCH) 0.0063 1.9197 2-acetoxy-1,3-dichloropropane (1,3-DCH 0 0Acetate) 2-Monochlorohydrin (2-MCH) 0.0122 3.7294 Acetoxychloropropanol(MCH Acetate) 0 0 1-Monochlorohydrin (1-MCH) 0.0018 0.5545 Diacetins(Glycerol Diacetates) 0 0 Diacetoxychloropropanes (MCH 0.0011 0.3347Diacetates) Glycerol 0 0 Monacetin1 (Glycerol Acetate) 0 0 Monacetin2(Glycerol Acetate) 0 0 1,2,3-trichloropropane (TCP) 0 0 Triacetin(Glycerol Triacetate) 0 0 Chlorinated Diglycerols 0.0002 0.0005 Sum (AllOrganic Components) 0.3267 99.9527 Sum of Glycerol and Acetates 0 0 Sumof Monochlorohydrins and Acetates 0.0151 4.6186 1,3-Dichlorohydrin andAcetate 0.3052 93.414 2,3-Dichlorohydrin and Acetate 0.0063 1.9197Trichloropropane 0 0 Chlorinated diglycerol and esters 0.0002 0.0477

EXAMPLE 53 Use of Chlorohydrin to Prepare Epichlorohydrin

The dichlorohydrin (DCH) product prepared from Example 3 above was usedin this example. This experiment used a reactive distillation apparatusconsisting of a 1 liter jacketed kettle with a bottom outlet equipped atthe top with a 30 tray Oldershaw section, feed point for 10% caustic/DCHfeed, 6 tray Oldershaw section, aqueous return feed point and acondenser connected to a phase separator. The DCH and 10% caustic werepreheated and mixed immediately prior to introduction to the systemabove the 30 tray Oldershaw section. Operating conditions were apressure of 250 mm Hg, kettle temperature of 75-77° C., overheadtemperature of 65-67° C. and a feed temperature of 68-76° C. The DCHfeed rate and the caustic feed rate were adjusted to achieve a 10% molarexcess of caustic relative to DCH. A sample of crude epichlorohydrinproduced in the reaction/distillation apparatus had the followingcomposition as analyzed by gas chromatography with a flame ionizationdetector (area %):

Component Area % Epichlorohydrin 99.00 Glycidol 0.04 1,3-DCH 0.132,3-DCH 0.35 MCH 0.05

EXAMPLES 54 AND 55 AND COMPARATIVE EXAMPLES C AND D

Hydrogen chloride was bubbled through a mixture of glycerol (30 g),water (3.0 g) and 10 mmol of catalyst at atmospheric pressure for four(4) hours at 110° C. The hydrogen chloride flow rate was controlled at20-25 g per hour over the four (4) hour reaction period. After thistime, the reaction mixture was cooled and analyzed by gas chromatographyto determine the concentration of dichlorohydrins, monochlororhydrinsand unreacted glycerol. Table V shows the results obtained using aceticacid, 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid, phenylacetic acid and4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid as catalyst.

TABLE V Examples Comparative Comparative Example C Example 54 Example DExample 55 Catalyst Acetic 6-Hydroxyhexanoic Phenylacetic4-Hydroxyphenylacetic HCl Used (g) 86.3 92.2 90 101 Reaction Mass (g)50.75 51.78 48.4 52.5 Initial Glycerol (g) 30 30 30 30 PRODUCTS MolesDCH 0.0502 0.0651 0.0332 0.0363 Moles MCH 0.2432 0.2365 0.2221 0.2399CONVERSIONS Conversion to DCH 15.4 20 10.2 11.1 Conversion to MCH 74.772.6 68.2 73.6 Unconverted 6.9 8.1 17.5 17.5 Glycerol

EXAMPLES 56 AND 57 Atmospheric Pressure Hydrochlorination with TotalQuantitation of Chloroacetone

Two runs of an atmospheric reaction were carried out as described belowand as shown in the reaction scheme as follows:

A 100 ml Parr™ reactor was equipped with an anhydrous HCl feed system,mechanical stirrer, sample port, and a vent containing a two traps inseries cooled to −30° C. routed through a caustic scrubber system. Thereactor was charged with 30 g of glycerol and 2.7 wt % glacial aceticacid (0.83 g). Nitrogen was purged through the reactor head space andthe reactor was heated to 100° C. The nitrogen purge was switched toanhydrous HCl feed (0.105 g/min regulated by a Brooks™ 5850E Mass FlowController) and the reaction was allowed to progress for 24 hours.Samples were taken intermittently. A total of 161 g of HCl was added. Atthe end of the reaction the HCl feed was turned off, the reaction wascooled and nitrogen feed was reestablished to purge excess HCl. Thereactor was disassembled and contents poured into a vial. The first trapin the vent line between the reactor and the caustic scrubber wasremoved, weighed and analyzed for composition. The second trap wasrinsed with a known amount of water and the resulting solution was thenanalyzed for composition (GCMS). The results of these examples are shownin Table VI and VII below.

EXAMPLE 57 Superatmospheric Hydrochlorination of Glycerin with No WaterRemoval and Quantitation of Chloroacetone

In this example, a super atmospheric reaction was carried out asdescribed below and as shown in the reaction scheme as follows:

A 100 ml Parr™ reactor was charged with 30 g of glycerol and 2.7 wt %acetic acid. The reactor was purged with nitrogen at atmosphericpressure, then sealed, stirred and heated to 100° C. Anhydroushydrochloric acid was added through a calibrated mass flow controller ata rate to maintain a constant reactor pressure of 100 psig. After 4hours at reaction conditions, HCl feed was stopped and the reactor wascooled. The total HCl fed was 34 g. The reactor effluent was analyzedfor composition (GCMS). The results of this example are shown in TableVIII below.

TABLE VI Atmosphere Run #1: Pressure >10 psi for >50% of run time(peaked at 45 psi) Cl-acetone Cl-acetone Weight (g) (ppm) (gm) Reactor33.45 228 0.007627 Discharge Trap 1 9.65 676 0.006523 Trap 2 15 170.000255 Totals 0.014405 ppm Cl-acetone produced for Run #1: 334

TABLE VII Atmosphere Run #2: Pressure <3 psi during entire course of therun Cl-acetone Cl-acetone Weight (g) (ppm) (gm) Reactor 14.46 3900.005639 Discharge Trap 1 28.1 396 0.011128 Trap 2 3.5 6 0.000021 Totals0.016788 ppm Cl-acetone produced for Run #2: 394

TABLE VIII Pressure Run: Pressure held at 100 psie during entire courseof the run Cl-acetone Cl-acetone Weight (g) (ppm) (gm) Reactor 49.05 1300.006377 Discharge ppm Cl-acetone produced for Pressure Run: 130

1. A process for preparing an epoxide comprising the steps of: (a)contacting glycerin, an ester glycerin, or a mixture thereof withhydrogen chloride source at superatmospheric pressure in the presence ofa catalyst to produce a chlorohydrin, an ester of a chlorohydrin, or amixture thereof, said contacting step carried out without substantialremoval of water; and (b) contacting the chlorohydrin formed in step (a)above with a base to form an epoxide; wherein the combined concentrationof volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products and chloroacetone isfrom about 0.01 ppm to less than about 2000 ppm throughout any stage ofthe said process; wherein the process is carried out at a hydrogenchloride partial pressure of from about 15 psia to about 1000 psia; andwherein the catalyst is selected from the group consisting of acarboxylic acid, an anhydride, an acid chloride, an ester, a lactone, alactam, an amide, a metal organic compound, a metal salt, any compoundconvertible to a carboxylic acid under the reaction conditions of theprocess, and a combination thereof.
 2. The process of claim 1, whereinthe process is carried out in the presence of the catalyst and aco-catalyst selected from the group consisting of a chloride, a bromideand an iodide compound.
 3. The process of claim 1, wherein the processis carried out in the presence of the catalyst and a co-reactantselected from the group consisting of a chloride, a bromide and aniodide compound.
 4. The process of claim 3 wherein the co-reactant is anon-volatile source of ionic chloride.
 5. The process of claim 4 whereinthe co-reactant is sodium chloride, potassium chloride, an ionic liquidchloride salt, tetraalkylammonium chloride, n-butyl-methylimidazoliumchloride, a crosslinked divinylbenzene/styrene copolymer to which analkylarylammonium cation is covalently linked and ion paired withchloride anion, or a mixture thereof.
 6. The process of claim 1, whereinthe hydrogen chloride source is at least 50 mole % hydrogen chloride. 7.The process of claim 1, wherein the hydrogen chloride source is hydrogenchloride gas.
 8. The process of claim 1, wherein the chlorohydrin is adichlorohydrin, an ester of a dichlorohydrin, or a mixture thereof. 9.The process of claim 8 wherein the dichlorohydrin is1,3-dichloropropan-2-ol; 2,3-dichloropropan-1-ol; or a mixture thereof.10. The process of claim 1, wherein the glycerin hydrocarbon is crudeglycerol or glycerin available from a renewable source.
 11. The processof claim 10 wherein the crude glycerol contains less than 25 weight %water, and less than 25 weight % alkali or alkaline earth metal salts.12. The process of claim 1, wherein the glycerin is 1,2,3-propanetriol.13. The process of claim 1, wherein glycerin is co-fed with one or moreof the following diols: 1,2-ethanediol; 1,2-propanediol,1,3-propanediol; and butanediol positional isomers.
 14. The process ofclaim 1, wherein the catalyst has from 1 to about 60 carbon atoms. 15.The process of claim 1, wherein the catalyst has from two to about 20carbon atoms and has at least one functional group selected from thegroup consisting of an amine, an alcohol, a halogen, a sulfhydryl, anether, an ester, and a combination thereof, wherein the functional groupis attached no closer to the acid function than the alpha carbon. 16.The process of claim 1, wherein the catalyst is selected from the groupconsisting of acetic acid, adipic acid, propionic acid, hexanoic acid,heptanoic acid, stearic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid,4-methylvaleric acid, phenylacetic acid, cinnamic acid, succinic acid,polyacrylic acid, polyethylene grafted with acrylic acid,epsilon-caprolactone, delta-valerolactone, gamma-butyrolactone,epsilon-caprolactam, 6-chlorohexanoic acid, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acids,4-aminobutyric acid, 4-dimethylaminobutyric acid,4-trimethylammoniumbutyric acid chloride, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid,4-aminophenylacetic acid, 5-chlorovaleric acid, 5-hydroxyvaleric acid,4-hydroxybutyric acid, 4-chlorobutyric acid, 5-chloropentanoic acid, andmixtures thereof.
 17. The process of claim 1, wherein the catalyst isselected from the group consisting of acetic acid, adipic acid,propionic acid, butyric acid, 4-methylvaleric acid, hexanoic acid,heptanoic acid, stearic acid, epsilon-caprolactone, gamma-butyrolactone,6-chlorohexanoic acid, 4-aminobutyric acid, 4-dimethylaminobutyric acid,4-trimethylammoniumbutyric acid chloride, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid,4-aminophenylacetic acid, and mixtures thereof.
 18. The process of claim1, wherein the catalyst is selected from the group consisting of aceticacid, adipic acid, epsilon caprolactone, 6-chlorohexanoic acid,delta-valerolactone, 5-chloropentanoic acid, 4-chlorobutyric acid,4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, 4-aminophenylacetic acid, 4-aminobutyricacid, and mixtures thereof.
 19. The process of claim 1, wherein thecatalyst is acetic acid.
 20. The process of claim 1, wherein thecatalyst is caprolactone.
 21. The process of claim 1, wherein thecatalyst is an ester of glycerin, an ester of ethylene glycol or acompound convertible to an ester of propylene glycol under the reactionconditions; wherein said compound is selected from the group consistingof acetic acid, adipic acid, propionic acid, hexanoic acid, heptanoicacid, stearic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, 4-methylvaleric acid,phenylacetic acid, cinnamic acid, succinic acid, benzoic acid,polyacrylic acid, polyethylene grafted with acrylic acid, epsiloncaprolactone, delta-valerolactone, gamma-butyrolactone,epsilon-caprolactam, 6-chlorohexanoic acid, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acids,4-aminobutyric acid, 4-dimethylaminobutyric acid,4-trimethylammoniumbutyric acid chloride, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid,4-aminophenylacetic acid, 5-chlorovaleric acid, 5-hydroxyvaleric acid,4-hydroxybutyric acid, 4-chlorobutyric acid, 5-chloropentanoic acid, andmixtures thereof.
 22. The process of claim 1, wherein the catalyst is anester selected from the group consisting of glycerin monoacetate,glycerin diacetate, glycerin distearate,1-chloro-2,3-propanediolmonoacetate, a glycerin ester of apolycarboxylic acid, and mixtures thereof.
 23. The process of claim 1,wherein the catalyst is an insoluble polymer or copolymer havingcarboxylic acid moieties or esters thereof.
 24. The process of claim 23wherein the insoluble polymer or copolymer is a polyester, polyacrylicacid, polyamide, polyacrylate and copolymers thereof, or mixturesthereof.
 25. The process of claim 1, wherein the catalyst has a vaporpressure lower than the chlorohydrin or its azeotrope with water. 26.The process of claim 1, wherein the process is carried out at atemperature of from about 25° C. to about 300° C.
 27. The process ofclaim 1, including the step of separating the desired chlorohydrinsformed in step (a) from unreacted glycerin, undesired chlorohydrins andtheir esters, and catalyst prior to contacting the desired chlorohydrinswith a base to form an epoxide.
 28. The process of claim 27 includingthe step of recycling the separated unreacted glycerin, chlorohydrinsand their esters, and catalyst to step (a).
 29. The process of claim 27,including the step of reacting the product of step (a) with glycerin toconvert the desired chlorohydrin esters to the desired chlorohydrinsprior to separating the desired chlorohydrins from glycerin, undesiredchlorohydrins and their esters, and catalyst.
 30. The process of any oneof claims 1, 27, 28 and 29, wherein the chlorohydrin in step (a) is adichlorohydrin; and the epoxide formed is an epichlorohydrin.
 31. Theprocess of any one of claims 1, 27, 28, 29 and claim 30 wherein the baseis a carbonate, bicarbonate or hydroxide of sodium, potassium, calcium,magnesium or mixtures thereof.
 32. The process of claim 1, wherein theglycerin source is crude glycerol.
 33. The process of claim 1, whereinthe glycerin is obtained from an oleochemical material or a biomassmaterial.
 34. The process of claim 1, wherein the glycerin is a mixtureof a synthetic glycerol and a glycerol obtained from an oleochemicalmaterial or a biomass material.
 35. The process of claim 1, wherein thecatalyst is less volatile than the desired chlorohydrin, the ester of achlorohydrin or the mixture thereof; and wherein the catalyst hasheteroatom substituents.
 36. The process of claim 1, wherein thecatalyst has the following Formula (a):

wherein R′ is selected from the group consisting of an amine, analcohol, a halogen, a sulfhydryl, an ether; an alkyl, an aryl, analkaryl group of from 1 to about 20 carbon atoms having R′; and acombination thereof; and wherein R is selected from the group consistingof hydrogen, an alkali, an alkali earth metal, a transition metal, analkyl, an aryl, and an alkaryl group of from 1 to abut 20 carbon atoms.37. The process of claim 1, wherein the catalyst is selected from thegroup consisting of lactones, esters, lactams, amides, carboxylic acids,and combinations thereof.
 38. The process of claim 1, wherein thecatalyst is selected from the group consisting of a caprolactone, acarboxylic acid amide, a carboxylic acid lactone, a caprolactam, andcombinations thereof.
 39. The process of claim 1, wherein the catalystis selected from the group consisting of 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid,6-chlorohexanoic acid, caprolactone, ε-caprolactam, γ-butyrolactam;γ-butyrolactone, δ-valerolactone, and ε-caprolactone; 6-aminocaproicacid; 4-aminophenylacetic acid, 4-aminobutyric acid,4-dimethylaminobutyric acid, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid,4-dimethylaminophenylacetic acid, aminophenylacetic acid, lactic acid,glycolic acid, 4-dimethylaminobutyric acid, 4-trimethylammoniumbutyricacid, and combinations thereof.
 40. The process of claim 1, wherein atleast some of the chlorohydrin is a dichlorohydrin.
 41. The process ofclaim 1, wherein the dichlorohydrin is 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol or2,3-dichloro-1-propanol.
 42. The process of claim 1, wherein thevolatile chlorinated hydrocarbon by-products comprise1,2,3-trichloropropane and isomers thereof, 1,3-dichloropropene,1,2-dichloropropene, 2,3-dichloro-1-propene, 2-chloro-2-propene-1-ol,3-chloro-propene-1-ol; isomers thereof; or mixtures thereof.